#aboutauthor – Page 52 – Avonna Loves Genres

Blog Tour/Feature Post and Book Review: Here To Stay by Adriana Herrera

Hi, everyone!

Today is my turn on the blog tour and to share my Feature Post and Book Review for HERE TO STAY by Adriana Herrera.

Below you will find a book description, my book review, an excerpt from the book, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Enjoy!

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Book Description

Award-winning, highly-acclaimed author Adriana Herrera delivers the sexy, modern enemies-to-lovers romance you’ve been waiting for.

Starting over is more about who you’re with than where you live…

Julia del Mar Ortiz is not having the best year.

She moved to Dallas with her boyfriend, who ended up ditching her and running back to New York after only a few weeks. Left with a massive—by NYC standards, anyway—apartment and a car lease in the scorching Texas heat, Julia is struggling…except that’s not completely true. Running the charitable foundation of one of the most iconic high fashion department stores in the world is serious #lifegoals.

It’s more than enough to make her want to stick it out down South.

The only monkey wrench in Julia’s plans is the blue-eyed, smart-mouthed consultant the store hired to take them public. Fellow New Yorker Rocco Quinn’s first order of business? Putting Julia’s job on the chopping block.

When Julia is tasked with making sure Rocco sees how valuable the programs she runs are, she’s caught between a rock and a very hard set of abs. Because Rocco Quinn is almost impossible to hate—and even harder to resist.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53179166-here-to-stay

Title: Here to Stay

Author: Adriana Herrera

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Imprint: Carina Press

On-Sale: August 25, 2020

Format: Ebook (Trade Paperback & Audiobook formats also available!)

Ebook ISBN: 9780369700926Ebook Price: $3.99 USD

***

My Book Review

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

HERE TO STAY by Adriana Herrera is a contemporary romance that brings the heat. This is a standalone which could easily become a fun series with ethnic New Yorkers coming together for support and fun in their new surroundings of Dallas.

Julia del Mar’s year did not start out well, but she loves her new job running a charitable foundation and she is making her life in Dallas work. The foundation is run by one of the most iconic high fashion department stores in the world and which was family run, but the siblings have decided to go public.

Rocco Quinn is sent by his New York based consulting company to ready the chain to go public. Rocco is trying to stay above the family feud and do his job. The twins want the foundation to continue, but their younger brother wants it gone. And if the brother gets his way the beautiful Julia will lose her job.

Julia is tasked with introducing Rocco to all the programs the foundation runs. The heat generated between these two is explosive, but both know they are on opposite sides and in a no-win situation.

I was completely drawn into Julia and Rocco’s lives. Ms. Herrera made them come to life with not only their business dilemma, but all the family and friends that were a part of their lives. I feel Julia and Rocco’s romance built at a realistic pace as they both tried so hard to fight their attraction, but the chemistry is just too hot.

I thoroughly enjoyed this contemporary romance and its glimpse at Dominican culture.

***

Excerpt

Julia

I stepped into the elevator and shoved my phone into the pocket of my dress, took a moment to send a prayer to the employee discount that let me buy bomb clothes on a nonprofit worker budget, and did some mental math of what could be going on.

Was the program really in trouble? Could we actually get shut down?

Nope, I would not go there. I would not think about what it would be like to get on a plane back to New York dumped and unemployed. Not happening.

A distraction. That’s what I needed. Just as the door to the elevator was about to close, someone got in. The fact that I was eye level with the base of his throat was a good clue as to who it was, but when he opened his mouth and the now familiar knee-weakening baritone echoed off the walls of the elevator, I got my confirmation.

“Morning, Ms. Ortiz.” That voice could be used for interrogation tactics. Every muscle in my body loosened at the same time whenever I heard it.

I squeaked out a “Morning” and took my time lifting my head all the way up to look at the last person in the world I wanted overhearing my conversation with my mother.

Him.

Rocco Fucking Quinn, otherwise known as the “Team Leader” for the consulting firm looking to bag my job. The guy with the New York City-est name on the planet. I hadn’t exactly gotten personal with Mr. Quinn, but I picked up on that accent the first time we met.

“What’s good?” I really tried to sound polite, but my Queens jumped out in situations like this. I did not gulp, because I could not let this fucker see me sweat. I managed not to cut my eyes at him, but it was a close call.

I took him in, ramrod straight, every hair in its place, not a wrinkle in sight, and decided he could not be the proprietor of the laugh-choke from before. The man seemed to be completely lacking a sense of humor. I knew he must have teeth but I’d never seen them.

Yeah, definitely not him. That fact rallied my spirits a little bit as I stood close enough to pick up on how he smelled. Like the ocean and something woodsy. That was not helpful information.

Without saying another word, I ran my eyes over him. It struck me that he was not wearing something bespoke like pretty much everyone here. Don’t get me wrong, he still looked good enough to eat, but he was clearly on a budget. And at a place where everyone looked like they were heading to a New York Fashion Week photo shoot, it was sort of jarring. Still, the suit fit him well. And there was no question, this guy could wear the fuck out of a suit. I held back a whimper when I envisioned him in a Brioni or a Zegna. They’d have to put out a heat advisory for the building if that ever happened.

“I thought I could detect a familiar accent when I was coming down the hall.” His perfectly blue eyes twinkled at what I was certain was an expression of utter mortification on my face. He sounded pleasant enough, but he was also alluding to the fact that I was yapping on my phone. This wasn’t the first time he tried to be cute. Rocco Quinn seemed to like fucking with me. And it was only a matter of time before he stepped on my last nerve and I reamed him out.

Thankfully, just as I was scrambling to respond to his comment, the elevator got to my floor. I was planning to just leave him hanging and run off, but he was hot on my heels.

Dammit.

“Sounds like your mom misses you.”

Oh, for fuck’s sake. Why did he have to act all fake nice?

I nodded without looking at him. “She does. Listen, Mr. Quinn—”

“You can call me Rocco.”

Nope, that was not happening. I was not letting this sexy bastard talk me into getting all chummy with him. I was already on thin ice as it was. He could keep his pheromones and his slick-as-fuck expressions to his damn self. I came to a dead stop a few feet away from the conference room door where my boss—and whatever shitty news she was about to give me—was waiting.

When I turned around, Rocco was looking down at me with an expectant smile. God he was handsome, that jet-black hair so dark it almost had a tinge of blue and those eyes, piercing. And I guess he had teeth after all, and of course they were perfect. Asshole. I shook my head hard when my traitorous brain started wondering what Pantone color his eyes would be.

Get your head in the game, Julia del Mar.

I straightened my back, determined to fight off the debilitating effects of those gleaming teeth and perfectly pink lips. I had to remember this niceness was probably his way of getting us to let our guard down. He was here to find ways to cut jobs. I was not about to mouth off and get myself fired, but I needed to get some things clear.

“Look.” I was proud of myself for not rolling my neck or pointing at his face. “I know you’re trying to be nice, but you make me nervous.” I pulled on the hem of my blue polka-dot dress and smoothed my yellow cardigan, avoiding eye contact at all costs.

“Why do I make you nervous?”

Uh, maybe because you’re here to close down as much of the foundation as you can.

I refrained from actually saying that because I had not been raised by a Puerto Rican man and Dominican woman just so I could act like I had no home training with the guy who could get me fired. But it was a close call.

“I’m sorry for saying that. You don’t make me nervous.”

Lies.

Rocco Quinn didn’t just make me nervous. He made me want to run my hands all over that big-ass body and moon over his almost but not quite curly hair and blue eyes, in spite of the fact that I knew he was out here gunning for my entire program. And yet, I still wanted to kiss the hell out of him while I climbed him like a sequoia.

***

About the Author

Adriana was born and raised in the Caribbean, but for the last fifteen years has let her job (and her spouse) take her all over the world. She loves writing stories about people who look and sound like her people, getting unapologetic happy endings.

When she’s not dreaming up love stories, planning logistically complex vacations with her family or hunting for discount Broadway tickets, she’s a trauma therapist in New York City, working with survivors of domestic and sexual violence.

Her Dreamers series has received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Booklist and has been featured in The TODAY Show on NBC, Entertainment Weekly, NPR, Library Journal and The Washington Post. Her debut, American Dreamer, was selected as one of Booklist’s ‘Best Romance Debuts of 2019’, and one of the ‘Top 10 Romances of 2019’ by Entertainment Weekly. Her third novel, American Love Story, was one of the winners in the first annual Ripped Bodice Award for Excellence in Romantic Fiction. Adriana is an outspoken advocate for diversity in romance and has written for Remezcla and Bustle about Own Voices in the genre. She’s one of the co-creators of the Queer Romance PoC Collective. Represented by Taylor Haggerty at Root Literary.

Author Social Media Links

Website: https://adrianaherreraromance.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ladrianaherrera

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laura.adriana.94801

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ladriana_herrera/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18639202.Adriana_Herrera

Purchase Links

Harlequin: https://www.harlequin.com/shop/books/9780369700926_here-to-stay.html

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Here-Stay-Adriana-Herrera-ebook/dp/B086R2QY77

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/here-to-stay-adriana-herrera/1136795733

Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/us/book/here-to-stay/id1506190677

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Adriana_Herrera_Here_to_Stay?id=_-zaDwAAQBAJKobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/here-to-stay-20

Release Blitz/Feature Post and Book Review: Revealing Annie by Freya Barker

Hi, everyone!

I am so excited to be sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for the Release Blitz for REVEALING ANNIE (Police and Fire Operation Alpha / On Call Book 5) by Freya Barker. This is great series filled with mature alpha male heroes and intelligent heroines finding their HEAs in a time of danger.

Below you will find a book description, my book review, an about the author section, the author’s social media links and a Rafflecopter giveaway. Enjoy!

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Book Description:

As the fire department’s joker, Kyle (Sumo) Matsumoto, loves nothing better than ribbing the guys at the station. However, he’s all business when he’s on a call, and when he tries to snag the attention of a cute little baker.

Then life takes a more serious turn when he’s plunged headfirst into fatherhood—of a teenage boy—giving his teammates the last laugh.

For almost a year, Annie Flowers has been tucked away in plain sight. It’s amazing what a pair of colored contacts and a different haircut can accomplish. She likes her new, simple life in Durango with her only concern getting up on time for her morning shift at the bakery.

Yet she’s not as invisible as she thinks. Not to the creep who chased her into hiding, and definitely not to the charming EMT with a penchant for sweets .

Annie trusts only one person, her friend, Erin Gardner, but she’s in Texas, so when she discovers someone has been leaving her unwanted gifts, she has no choice but to put her faith in Sumo.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54280447-revealing-annie

✦✦ RELEASE BLITZ ✦✦

Title: Revealing Annie (Police and Fire: Operation Alpha) (On Call Book 5)

Author: Freya Barker

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Release Date: August 18, 2020

Hosted by: Buoni Amici Press, LLC.

Amazon:https://amzn.to/3fRc818

#KIndleUnlimited

Previous books in the series:http://www.freyabarker.com/books/on-call-series/

***

My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

REVEALING ANNIE (Police and Fire Operation Alpha / On Call #5) by Freya Barker is another great addition to this romantic suspense series revolving around the men and women who serve the public in and around the beautiful city of Durango, CO.

Annie Flowers is hiding in plain sight. She may have dyed her blond hair brown and made her blue eyes brown with colored contacts, but she lives a routine of working as a baker in the local grocery store and living in the local trailer park. She is comfortable with her low key, simple life in Durango.

Kyle “Sumo” Matsumoto is one of the Durango fire station’s EMTs and he lives for the chance to rib the other members of the station. He is completely dedicated to his job and just has not found the right woman to share his life with yet. Then, he notices this cute little baker and he decides he wants more than just her tasty baked goods.

Life suddenly becomes very serious when Kyle finds out he is the father of a fourteen-year-old who knows nothing about him. Kyle is not only thrown into the deep end of fatherhood, and he is getting a return ribbing from his teammates, but that will not stop his pursuit of Annie.

Annie finds she is no longer as invisible as she thinks. While she is receiving unwanted gifts and threats again, which sent her into hiding in the first place, she finds she cannot push away the one man she is coming to trust. Will putting her faith in Sumo and his friends be enough?

Once again, I am completely sucked into the lives and loves of Durango. Ms. Barker’s characters always feel so real and I feel like I know them personally. I also appreciate that Ms. Barker writes mature characters with realistic problems. The pairing of Sumo and Annie is a great match! Sumo is facing adjusting to fatherhood and finding a woman he cares for who is in danger all at the same time, but he rolls with it all. Annie has found not only a man she can trust and love, but a whole town she can feel safe in. This book not only has the romantic suspense plot of Annie’s stalker, but also the subplot of Sumo fighting for his newly found son. This book does have some crossover with other characters from the series, but I feel it can be read as a standalone. I feel once you do, you are going to want to go back to read them all.

I highly recommend this romantic suspense, all the books in this series and all the books written by Ms. Barker!

***

About the Author

USA Today bestselling author Freya Barker loves writing about ordinary people with extraordinary stories.

Driven to make her books about ‘real’ people; she creates characters who are perhaps less than perfect, each struggling to find their own slice of happy, but just as deserving of romance, thrills and chills in their lives.

Recipient of the ReadFREE.ly 2019 Best Book We’ve Read All Year Award for “Covering Ollie, the 2015 RomCon “Reader’s Choice” Award for Best First Book, “Slim To None”, and Finalist for the 2017 Kindle Book Award with “From Dust”, Freya continues to add to her rapidly growing collection of published novels as she spins story after story with an endless supply of bruised and dented characters, vying for attention!

Social Media

Facebook: http://bit.ly/FreyaFacebookTwitter: http://bit.ly/FreyaTwitter
Instagram: http://bit.ly/FreyaInstagram
Web: http://bit.ly/FreyaWeb
Goodreads: http://bit.ly/FreyaGoodreads
Newsletter: https://www.subscribepage.com/Freya_Newsletter Bookbub: http://bit.ly/FreyaBookBub

Rafflecopter Giveaway

https://bit.ly/3alIWhU

Blog Tour/Feature Post and Book Review: Little Falls by Elizabeth Lewes

Little Falls by Elizabeth Lewes

#LittleFalls @Elizabeth_Lewes @crookedlanebks @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours

Hi, everyone!

Today I am on the blog tour and sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for LITTLE FALLS by Elizabeth Lewes.

Below you will find a book blurb, my book review, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Enjoy!

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Book Blurb

She tried to forget the horrors of war–but her quiet hometown conceals a litany of new evils.

Sergeant Camille Waresch did everything she could to forget Iraq. She went home to Eastern Washington and got a quiet job. She connected with her daughter, Sophie, whom she had left as a baby. She got sober. But the ghosts of her past were never far behind.

While conducting a routine property tax inspection on an isolated ranch, Camille discovers a teenager’s tortured corpse hanging in a dilapidated outbuilding. In a flash, her combat-related PTSD resurges–and in her dreams, the hanging boy merges with a young soldier whose eerily similar death still haunts her. The case hits home when Sophie reveals that the victim was her ex-boyfriend–and as Camille investigates, she uncovers a tangled trail that leads to his jealous younger brother and her own daughter, wild, defiant, and ensnared.

The closer Camille gets to the truth, the closer she is driven to the edge. Her home is broken into. Her truck is blown up. Evidence and witnesses she remembers clearly are erased. And when Sophie disappears, Camille’s hunt for justice becomes a hunt for her child. At a remote compound where the terrifying truth is finally revealed, Camille has one last chance to save her daughter–and redeem her own shattered soul.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49772280-little-falls

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My Book Review

RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars

Little Falls by Elizabeth Lewes is an intense debut suspense/thriller/mystery mash-up from this author and I would be interested in seeing it become a series. I was pulled right into the story which not only has plenty of action and suspense, but it is seen by the reader through the eyes of the main character who is still suffering from PTSD after returning from service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Camille Waresch returned to her small hometown in Eastern Washington after serving several tours as a frontline medic. She is trying to connect with her teenage daughter who grew up with Camille’s parents while she was overseas and is always angry with her, deal with her PTSD and keep her job as a county property tax inspector. Her father also left her the local gas mart as a permanent income and place to live about the shop.

While doing a routine property tax inspection, Camille discovers a badly tortured young boy hung by barbwire in a barn. She immediately has a severe PTSD flashback to a similar scene from her time in Iraq. The two victims merge in her dreams and she does not know if she can trust her memories, but the dead boy was her daughter’s boyfriend and she becomes involved in the investigation over the concerns of her childhood friend, Sergeant Darren Moses.

The closer Camille gets to the truth the more danger she is in. The gas mart is broken into, her truck in blown up and evidence she discovers for Darren disappears. The two cases, past and present converge. Her daughter disappears and she has one last chance to save her daughter and herself.

I love a protagonist like Camille when they are trying to be “normal”, but everyone and everything is against them. I feel the author did a great job of portraying her PTSD, difficulty in returning to civilian life and the inability to tell if Camille was telling the truth, remembering something from the past or having false memories. The plot moves at a fast pace between past and present and occasionally I was confused because you are only viewing everything through Camille’s eyes. I am hoping Ms. Lewes picks up these characters again in future books because I think there is still so much she can do with Camille and the other secondary characters.

I recommend this debut suspense/thriller/mystery and I am hoping for more.

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About Elizabeth Lewes

Elizabeth Lewes is a U.S. Navy veteran who served during Operation Enduring Freedom as a linguist. A practicing attorney, she resides in Seattle with her family.

Social Media

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Elizabeth_Lewes @elizabeth_lewes

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elizabeth_lewes/

Purchase Links

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3jSSe9e

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3fbXr8K

Google Books: https://bit.ly/33d25ke

Book Depository: https://bit.ly/336hnYg

Barnes and Noble: https://bit.ly/3ghek3i

Publishing Information:

Published by Crooked Lane Books in hardcover, audio and digital formats on 11^th August 2020

Blog Tour/Feature Post and Book Review: Say No More by Karen Rose

Say No More (The Sacramento Series #2) by Karen Rose

#SayNoMore @KarenRoseBooks @headlinepg @damppebbles #damppebblesblogtours

Hi, everyone!

Today is my turn on the Say No More Blog Tour. I am very excited to share my Feature Post and Book Review for SAY NO MORE (Romantic Suspense #24, Sacramento #2) by Karen Rose. I loved the first book in the Sacramento series and I can happily say book #2 did not let me down.

Below you will find a book blurb, my book review, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Enjoy!

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Book Blurb

Perfect for fans of James Patterson and Karin Slaughter, this is the second gripping instalment of the Sacramento series from Sunday Times bestseller Karen Rose. An explosive crime thriller, Say No More will keep you gripped until the final page.

If they ever catch you, say nothing. Admit nothing. Never tell.

Mercy Callahan never thought she’d be able to talk about her past. When she arrives in Sacramento to make peace with her brother Gideon, and to help find the brutal cult that took away her childhood, she is finally ready to talk. But when Ephraim Burton – the man who made her life a living hell – follows her there, she realises she might never be safe.

Rafe Sokolov would do anything to have Mercy back in his life and would go to any length to protect her. But when it becomes apparent that Ephraim is more determined than ever to get Mercy back, even Rafe might not be able to stop the trail of destruction he leaves in his wake. As Ephraim draws near, it’s clear it’s not just Mercy who is in danger; those closest to her are firmly in his sights.

Will Mercy sacrifice herself to help bring Ephraim down? Or will he finally get what he’s always wanted…

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50156405-say-no-more

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My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

SAY NO MORE (Romantic Suspense #24, Sacramento #2) by Karen Rose is the second book in the Sacramento romantic suspense series. I loved the first book “Say You’re Sorry” so I was very excited to get book #2 and it did not disappoint. It is just as action packed, intense and suspenseful with another great H/h pair.

Mercy Callahan escaped a cult seventeen years ago and has moved on with her life. She still feared that Ephriam, who took her as his wife at the age of twelve and abused her, would never give up looking for her. She did not know that the man who killed her mother and almost killed her told Ephraim she was dead.

During the FBI hunt for a serial killer, Mercy and her brother, Gideon reconnect and Mercy meets his closest friend, Rafe Sokolov. Mercy has returned to Sacramento to apologize to Gideon for running away after being saved from the serial killer and see if her feelings for Rafe are real. While at the airport, Mercy is almost abducted by Ephriam who has discovered she is alive and her death faked.

Mercy and Rafe are determined to find and uncover the cult’s secrets as Ephriam leaves a trail of dead bodies and will do anything to take Mercy back to the cult dead or alive.

Karen Rose always writes longer books that go in depth into the hero and heroine and their personal connections with an action filled and suspenseful plot that weaves everything together into a great romantic suspense read. I was looking forward to reading more about Mercy after meeting her in the first book. She had misunderstandings that needed to be revealed. Her character has been through so much and yet she still has the capacity to trust and love. Rafe has had his own personal loses and it let him understand Mercy better than anyone else. The romance builds very slowly due to Mercy’s abuse, but you know it is going to be strong and solid by the HEA. All the secondary characters are as fully fleshed as the H/h and even with the different and large family units on both ends of the country, it is never confusing. You can read this book as a standalone, but I believe you will enjoy it more if you read “Say You’re Sorry” first.

This book has everything I look for in a romantic suspense. I know I will get action, suspense, unexpected plot twists and an H/h I will fall in love with. I am always excited to get a new story from this author to catch up with all the families and the previous main characters.

I highly recommend this romantic suspense and the Sacramento series!

***

About the Author

Karen Rose was introduced to suspense and horror at the tender age of eight when she accidentally read Poe’s The Pit and The Pendulum and was afraid to go to sleep for years. She now enjoys writing books that make other people afraid to go to sleep. Karen lives in Florida with her family, their cat, Bella, and two dogs, Loki and Freya. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading, and her new hobby – knitting.

Social Media

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KarenRoseBooks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KarenRoseBooks/

Website: http://www.karenrosebooks.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karenrosebooks/

Purchase Links

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/39sS03O

Waterstones: https://bit.ly/3g2Qs3b

Book Depository: https://bit.ly/2WX26VO

Google Books: https://bit.ly/32VguBC

Hive.co.uk: https://bit.ly/3f2Akxp

Publishing Information:

Published in hardcover, audio and digital formats by Headline on 6^th August 2020

Feature Post and Book Review: Rules of the Road by Ciara Geraghty

Hi, everyone!

I am very excited to be sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for Ciara Geraghty’s new book – RULES OF THE ROAD. I absolutely loved this thought provoking book of friendship, family and love! (Please Be Advised: The story does contain an assisted suicide.)

Below you will find a book description, my book review, an about the author section and the author’s social media links.

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Book Description

The simple fact of the matter is that Iris loves life. Maybe she’s forgotten that. Sometimes that happens, doesn’t it? To the best of us?
All I have to do is remind her of that one simple fact.

When Iris Armstrong goes missing, her best friend Terry, wife, mother and all-round worrier, is convinced something bad has happened.

And when she finds her glamorous, feisty friend, she’s right: Iris is setting out on a journey that she plans to make her last.

The only way for Terry to stop Iris is to join her, on a road trip that will take her, Iris and Terry’s confused father Eugene onto a ferry, across the Irish sea and into an adventure that will change all of their lives.

Somehow what should be the worst six days of Terry’s life turn into the best.

***

My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

RULES OF THE ROAD by Ciara Geraghty is a beautifully written and poignant women’s fiction story of friendship, family, and love. It is an emotional journey from start to finish and I was in a complete book hangover/coma when I hit the end. (Have some tissues handy for not only the sad tears, but the happy.)

Terry is a wife, a mother of two grown daughters, the rock of her family and an all-around worrier. Everything must be in its place and every precaution must be taken. The girls are gone now, but she has found out she needs to pick up her father, who has Alzheimer’s from his care home for the week.

When they return home, Terry realizes she has not seen her best and basically only friend and neighbor, Iris recently. Iris loves life. She is bold, says anything and is willing to try anything. But since Iris was diagnosed with primary progressive MS, Terry worries. Iris has been dealing with her disease, but it is and will get progressively worse. When she checks out Iris’ home, she finds her friend has made plans for a journey that will be her last.

Terry knows the only way to stop Iris is to join her. Terry, her father, Eugene and Iris take off on a six-day road trip from Ireland to Switzerland that will change all of their lives.

For me, this book is written with some of the most realistic and memorable characters of any women’s fiction book I have read so far this year. A friendship that at first glance seems strange, but then you realize their friendship is based on a deep love and caring that may not always be spoken, but it is heartfelt and strong. Iris had decided on her path and she enjoys the trip to its fullest, but in the end, she discovers she needs her friend to be with her and she does not want to be alone. Terry is the character that grows and blooms the most along every hour of their trip. Her interactions with her father, her wanting to change her best friend’s mind, the discovery of her own freedom and strengths, all converge in an emotional awakening that this author was able to capture beautifully with the written word. All the secondary characters were also fully fleshed and add an additional depth and realism to the story.

I cannot say enough about this beautiful story!

I highly recommend Rules of the Road!

***

About the Author

I was born and reared in Dublin. My mother took one look at me and decided to call me Ciara (pronounced Keira as in Keira Knightly but with lower cheek bones…). When pressed, she said it was because she ‘liked’ the name. From that moment, until I turned thirty-four, I wrote not one word, discounting the diary I kept as a teenager, full of angst and regret and heartache and bitterness; the usual.

Then, when I was 34, I signed up for a creative writing nightclass in Plunkett’s College in Whitehall where I started writing stories. I haven’t stopped since.

I love writing and I hate writing. I love having written. I hate looking at the blank page or the blank screen and knowing that I have to fill it up with words that mightn’t be any good. It’s a bit like going to the gym. You hate going. But you feel great on your way home. Sweaty, with a face like a beef tomato. But great all the same.

I have three children and one husband and have recently adopted a dog who is the same age as my youngest daughter. Together, they are in charge of pretty much everything.

When I was growing up, you could tell the days of the week by the dinners we had. The worst day was Thursday when my mother made us eat liver. She made it worse by serving the liver with lovely homemade chips and sausages and rashers and egg; she called it a ‘mixed grill’. The blood from the liver ran across the plate and tainted everything. One of the best things about being an adult is that I don’t have to eat liver. Or peas. Or semolina.

My favourite time of the day is the night. Or very early in the morning. I wrote my first book, Saving Grace, mostly at night and in the early morning. Now, I write at nine o’clock in the morning and knock off when the children come home from school. I miss the night. And the early morning. But I’ve learned that writing is work and you have to be able to do it during the allocated hours and I suppose I’ve gotten used to it. The best bit about writing a book is the two words ‘The’ and ‘End’. It’s a bit like finding a pub in Ireland where you can smoke after hours – it’s that good.

Writing is addictive, probably because you feel a bit better about things when it’s done. It’s like drink that way, except it won’t give you a hangover or cirrhosis of the liver or anything nasty like that. You might get a stiff arse (that’s bottom in Irish) from sitting in the one place for too long but that’s about it. And even though stiff arses can be uncomfortable, they’re completely worth it when a reader tells me that they’ve read my book and that they liked it. That makes me feel like one of the Whos in Dr. Seuss’s Horton Hears a Who when they shout I am here. I am here. I am here. I am here.

Social Media Links

Website: www.ciarageraghty.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ciarageraghty

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CiaraGeraghtyBooks

LIVE: COME AND JOIN the CHRISTMAS IN JULY FUN! Harlequin Movie Watch Party on Facebook

Hi, everyone!

Sharing something a little bit different today. This Thursday, July 23rd at 8 PM EST you are invited to a Harlequin Facebook Movie Watch Party.

Below is an about the book section, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Come and join the Christmas in July fun!

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About HIS COUNTRY CINDERELLA

Hold on to your Stetsons! A reliable source tells me that Zane Gunther is hiding out in Thunder Canyon. Now the tweets and texts are flying about the music legend and a certain single mom who’s having trouble making ends meet Zane came to the Montana mountain town to escape the paparazzi and a tragedy he can’t forget. But keeping a low profile seems next to impossible, especially once he falls hard for local girl Jeannette Williams.

Is this cowboy looking to make a home in Thunder Canyon? Stay tuned, loyal readers, to see if Zane is getting ready to propose to the widowed waitress who’s already gaga over him by crooning a love song straight from his heart.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11255608-his-country-cinderella?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=Nanhw3VgA6&rank=1

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About KAREN ROSE SMITH

Award-winning author Karen Rose Smith lives in Pennsylvania and has sold over 80 novels since 1991. Her romances have made both the USA TODAY list and the Amazon Contemporary Romance Bestseller list. Believing in the power of love, she envisions herself writing relationship novels and mysteries for a long time to come! Readers can e-mail Karen at www.karenrosesmith.com or follow her on Twitter @karenrosesmith and on Facebook.

Author Links